By Richard Green
CEO, Wealth-X
Business development can be daunting in any market, but for prestige
organizations seeking a select group of ultra high-spending clients or donors,
just a handful of warm prospects can be the difference between exceeding
targets or missing them altogether.
Winning new ultra high net worth (UHNW) clients or donors requires a great deal of trust, and there are no shortcuts to building it. UHNW prospects present a unique set of challenges and typically have greater demands on their time, face far more marketing pressures, and consequently have more demanding and distinctive standards. Because of these unique preferences, UHNW individuals require an elevated approach for effective engagement.
Connecting to the genuine passions and interests of an UHNW prospect allows you to
capture mindshare, winning a place in their attention and establishing an initial level of trust.
While standard prospecting approaches are far less likely to succeed, the right approach requires finding the best engagement points — those that are based on a deep knowledge of each UHNW prospect.
Finding these points of engagement and connection is a vital first step toward cultivating relationships. Behind every major sale or gift lies a significant amount of time and work invested in creating that relationship.
As the leader in UHNW prospecting, Wealth-X has developed a number of best practices and strategies for prospect engagement that have opened doors and built lasting connections for hundreds of our clients.
Our approach is built on three key principles: Discovery, Research, and Engagement. Each of these sections will help you build a successful roadmap for UHNW prospecting, providing you with a concrete action plan to turn formerly unreachable targets into long-term clients or donors.
In order to successfully engage UHNW prospects, there are several key principles based around these two concepts.
THE EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
People don’t buy products and services because they’re the best, they buy them because of an emotional connection, driven by a belief. People choose to buy a product or service because of the people behind that product. While this fundamental concept is true at any wealth level, it is especially crucial to remember when engaging UHNW prospects, because needs and necessities play a very small part in their decision-making process.
NETWORKING IS A VIRTUOUS CIRCLE
Anyone can find success through networking because they want to make a quick sale, but networking with the intention of helping people and providing a quality product, service, or value — outside of what they may be worth to you — must be your goal. By following this principle, clients and their associates will always come to you first because of the human connection behind what you’re selling — people buy a connection with another person, not just products or services.
THE KEY PRINCIPLES OF UHNW PROSPECTING:
TREAT EVERY UHNW INDIVIDUAL AS A MARKET SEGMENT OF ONE
Just like the rest of us, each UHNW individual has their own needs, preferences,
and idiosyncrasies. However, as a market segment, we know that they expect highly
personalized engagement and fully customized products and services. The good
news is that the payof for this high level of engagement can certainly be worth the
investment.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
UHNW individuals will quickly dismiss generic approaches and those that lack
preparation or show a poor understanding of them and their needs. Therefore, it is
vital to develop a perfectly tailored pitch that speaks to them on a personal level.
PATIENCE MAKES PERFECT
UHNW relationships need to be carefully nurtured over time. Stay up to date with
your prospects’ professional and personal lives, and leverage these events as an
opportunity to engage and develop these relationships. Be patient, always bearing
in mind that these relationships typically take much longer to build than with massmarket prospects.
HARNESS THE POWER OF REFERRALS AND PASSIONS
There are only two consistently proven UHNW engagement methods — an
introduction via a trusted acquaintance and/or pin-point targeting of an individual’s
unique interests, passions and hobbies. “Hope marketing” — mass campaigns that
often provide no ROI and no learnings or feedback for future improvement — will be
a waste of time and money.
For the full report visit www.wealth-x.com
